What If Ali, Had Never Come Back To Boxing After He Stopped In 1967?

[Perfect Plex]

I find this a interesting one. Lets say Ali, never comes back to boxing when he stopped in 1967.

His record would of stood at 29-0 with 9 defences of his Heavyweight Title & he would be 10-0 in world title fights.

With his best wins being Archie Moore, Sonny Listonx2, Floyd Patterson, George Chuvalo, Ernie Terrell, Cleveland Williams & Ernie Terrell.

How would his ATG ranking look then? How great do you think he'd be remembered today?

[Great John L]

I trhink his ATG rating would be considerably less had he never came back to boxing. Maybe not even the top 10 For one, with the exception of Liston, he had no good comeptition in his prime. There is also the fact that when he came back to boxing, he was dismissed as a underdog, but he proved everybody wrong and came back to win the title not twice, but three times, as well as beating several other gold medal winners in Foreman, Frazier, and Spinks. He also wouldn't have had fights that had the whole world watching like the Thrilla in Manila, The Fight of the Century, or The Rumble in the Jungle, or epic wars with Norton, Shavers, and Lyle. We also wouldn't have the Rocky movies since Sylvester Stallone would never have watched Ali vs Wepner in 1975 and get the idea for the Rocky film, which would span 5 sequels and become an important piece in pop culture. So, overall, had Ali never come back to boxing, I think he'd be #10 in a top ten list based on skill alone and his stance in Vietnam, but the 1970s were the years when he was regarded as a hero and when he had all time classic fights against great rivals.

[Wild Blue Yonda]

I thought this was going to be about how the division would have gone in the 70's, who would've been champ & for how long, how other fighters' careers would've changed, etc.

Obviously, this is a different angle. It's a tough question to ask, rather akin to knowing someone for several years & then having them ask you, "What would you think of me if you just emt me?" To disconnect all we know of Ali & imagine what he would look like sans the 1970's is pretty treacherous territory.

However, I will try (briefly). There was already a forming consensus among some historians that Ali was shaping as one of the most remarkable & perhaps best HW's ever by the late-60's, though his resume, while quite solid, would be lacking for a top-5 spot, IMO. My best guess is I'd have him in my top-10 (basing it more on head-to-head than achievements), but I can't see him rating higher than, maybe, 7-10 on my list all-time. I also don't think it'd be much of a surprise to see a lot of top-10 lists excluding him altogether.

[Scott9945]

Having lived through that era, I can tell you that before the return many had questions about Ali's heart and chin. Obviously he answered those doubts many times over, but because he was so dominant against an ordinary group of heavyweights in the 60's that doubt would have lingered. So summing it up there would have been two different sets of thinking, one regarding him as the GOAT while the others would feel that he hadn't answered the questions about him.

[Wild Blue Yonda]

Having lived through that era, I can tell you that before the return many had questions about Ali's heart and chin. Obviously he answered those doubts many times over, but because he was so dominant against an ordinary group of heavyweights in the 60's that doubt would have lingered. So summing it up there would have been two different sets of thinking, one regarding him as the GOAT while the others would feel that he hadn't answered the questions about him.

That'd be a fair take, too. Though not expressly his fault, Ali's competition between 60-67 was not worthy of his talents, for the most part. I think a split in thinking (maybe Roy Jones represents a modern example?) could well have eventuated.

[Kid McCoy]

Having lived through that era, I can tell you that before the return many had questions about Ali's heart and chin. Obviously he answered those doubts many times over, but because he was so dominant against an ordinary group of heavyweights in the 60's that doubt would have lingered. So summing it up there would have been two different sets of thinking, one regarding him as the GOAT while the others would feel that he hadn't answered the questions about him.

I think he'd be seen in a similar manner to Salvador Sanchez. Showed glimpses of greatness but never proved how great he really was. He might squeak into a top ten based on head to head match-ups although the response would always be: "who did he ever beat?" The two best known heavyweight lists from that era (Nat Fleischer and Charley Rose) both excluded him. He needed the top 70s heavyweights, Frazier and Foreman in particular, to make his legend.